Former Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly didn’t hold back in a scathing rebuke of her former network this week, accusing Fox News of blatant hypocrisy for mourning the death of political commentator Charlie Kirk while systematically banning him from the air for supporting Tucker Carlson and Donald Trump.
Speaking on her podcast, The Megyn Kelly Show, the former prime-time host directly called out Fox executives and personalities for what she says is a dishonest attempt to posthumously claim Kirk as one of their own — despite years of suppressing his voice behind the scenes.
“It’s really bothering me how Fox News is talking about Charlie, like he was theirs — he wasn’t. It’s a lie. Just stop,” Kelly said.
Her comments come amid a broader wave of criticism aimed at Fox News for its alleged “blacklist” of pro-Trump voices, which included not just Kirk, but a number of Trump allies and populist figures.
“Too Supportive of Tucker”
Kelly revealed that Fox News executives had effectively banned Kirk from regular appearances because of his open loyalty to Tucker Carlson, who was abruptly fired in April 2023.
“They wouldn’t put Charlie on, OK? I know this from my own behind-the-scenes conversations… They were annoyed on Team Charlie because he was banned. They wouldn’t put him on. He had been too supportive of Tucker.”
Despite being a prominent conservative voice and the co-founder of Turning Point USA, Kirk was reportedly shut out of the network after Carlson’s ouster. His appearances became so infrequent that he was able to identify a nine-month blackout using video monitoring services like Grabien.
Fox News’ snubbing extended to Turning Point USA’s annual AmericaFest event, which in past years had been heavily supported by Fox talent. In 2023, Kirk publicly noted that no one from the network showed up, pointing to a strained relationship.
“We don’t have a single person from Fox here,” Kirk said at the time. “They’ve been very good to me… I hope we can heal our relationship, because for whatever reason, it’s gone off the reservation.”
Hypocrisy on Full Display
Despite years of keeping Kirk at arm’s length, Fox News aired glowing tributes to him following his tragic death, with hosts and contributors referring to him as a “champion for free speech” and a valued figure in conservative media.
To many — including longtime allies and observers — the network’s eulogies felt performative, even exploitative.
“Let’s not forget,” said Trump fundraiser Caroline Wren on X, “that Fox banned Charlie from coming on the network from 2021–2024, and the same anchors crying on air tonight… didn’t have the guts to challenge Murdoch, Paul Ryan, and Karl Rove when they banned Charlie.”
“He was considered ‘other’,” Kelly said. “They put him on in July to co-host ‘Fox & Friends,’ which was a shock… and prior to that, that’s it. Years and years ago, 10 years ago. Yeah, OK.”
A Pattern of Blacklisting
Kirk’s experience reflects a larger pattern at Fox News: systematically blacklisting voices that strayed too far from the network’s approved messaging. The list includes a who’s-who of Trump World: Rudy Giuliani, Kari Lake, Peter Navarro, Donald Trump Jr., Steve Bannon, and even sitting members of Congress like Rep. Matt Gaetz and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Many of these figures were reportedly on a rotating “banned list” inside Fox News. That information was made public through a lawsuit by Abby Grossberg, a former Carlson producer who was fired in 2023. Fox eventually settled her claims for $12 million, though the network denied wrongdoing.
Kirk’s Independent Legacy
While Fox tried to marginalize him, Kirk’s influence only grew. Kirk built a vast digital empire through TPUSA, speaking regularly at universities, churches, and conservative conferences across the country.
Kelly emphasized that Kirk’s success was a result of his resilience and independence, not establishment backing.
“Charlie was ubiquitous in his appearances,” she said. “He was loving, forgiving, and would say yes to anyone… He built his own thing, created his own platform. He rose to power on his own, notwithstanding the absence of help from a lot of these big platforms that did their level best to demonize Charlie and Turning Point.”
In the end, Kirk didn’t belong to Fox News. He belonged to the grassroots, and that’s exactly why they tried to silence him.
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Yet Hannity & Waters respond to Kirk honors on shows
Thanks MK for Info
Bad optics FNC
Pretty clearly the banished crew, including Carlson, MTG, and recently Mr. Kirk were going against the zionist drumbeat. Funny how recent that was for Mr. Kirk…